Small camping trailers and most campers (mountable on pickup trucks or truck chassis) are generally satisfactory for two people. As the number of people increases, the space in such small units is increasingly cramped. In traveling back roads and near-wilderness areas, where the roads are rough and quite narrow, larger vehicles with larger living quarters are not feasible. Heretofore, large families had to compromise accommodations and locations. When large families used the larger vehicles they could not camp at out-of-way places with difficult access. When the larger families attempted to use the smaller camping units they were found to be unsatisfactory. Usually some members of the family had to sleep on the ground away from the unit. The larger living quarter units also necessarily slow down highway travel. Whether the unit is a carried or a towed unit, size determines accessibility to various areas and, also, the type and rate of travel over the highways.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,572,809 to Buland discloses a mobile home having laterally extensible side portions. However, in the retracted position the extensible sides close the interior portion so that there is not a complete passageway therethrough and thereby makes very cramped quarters.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,778,100 to Dillard discloses an expandable room for trailers, campers and the like having folding floors, side walls and a roof which collapse when not in use. Collapsible sides have the disadvantage in adding extra width to the campers or trailers, which makes driving hazardous because of imbalance and obstruction of the rear view.